


Expectations

by IetjeSiobhan



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Birthday, First Kiss, Fluff, Kyoutani is thoughtful, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-01
Updated: 2021-03-01
Packaged: 2021-03-14 04:16:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,391
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29786331
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IetjeSiobhan/pseuds/IetjeSiobhan
Summary: On any given day, there are only so many things Shigeru expects to happen.What he definitely, definitely does not expect is to leave the school after volleyball practice and find Kyoutani loitering around the front gates, looking shifty and uncomfortable.
Relationships: Kyoutani Kentarou/Yahaba Shigeru
Comments: 16
Kudos: 109





	Expectations

**Author's Note:**

> This is my birthday fic for Yahaba, because it's what he deserves. :D
> 
> It's also my very first Kyouhaba fic! Can you believe I've never written for them before, even though I love them with all my heart and they're one of my absolute favourite ships?
> 
> I hope you enjoy this tiny little thing that I spontaneously wrote today, when I realised that oh! It's Yahaba's birthday!
> 
> Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction. I do not financially profit from this work. The characters do not belong to me, I merely borrowed them.

On any given day, there are only so many things Shigeru expects to happen.

He expects his mother to have made breakfast when he comes down in the mornings. He expects the family dog to be sitting next to the breakfast table, begging with incessant fervour. He expects his walk to school to take him roughly five minutes. He expects volleyball practice to be exhausting and gruelling in the best of ways, and he expects to see Oikawa flirt with Iwaizumi without getting even one positive response.

On his birthday, the list of expectations includes birthday cupcakes for breakfast, and a horribly sung version of Happy Birthday that Oikawa forces the entire volleyball team to partake in.

What he definitely, definitely does _not_ expect is to leave the school after volleyball practice and find Kyoutani loitering around the front gates, looking shifty and uncomfortable.

They have just seen each other during volleyball practice, and then shortly after, when Kyoutani (as expected) showered and dressed as quickly as possible, much quicker than the rest of the team.

And now Kyoutani is standing here, instead of having left the school grounds as quickly as possible.

Shigeru looks at Kyoutani, and Kyoutani looks back, and then takes several steps forward, coming to stand right in front of Shigeru.

He has apparently been waiting for him, which is even more unexpected than seeing Kyoutani loitering around the school gates in the first place.

Their relationship hasn’t been antagonistic, lately, but that doesn’t mean they have a _friendly_ relationship now. It’s neutral, mostly; they’re both very aware that the third years are about to leave and are only still training with them out of love and, well, probably also Oikawa’s need for attention and Hanamaki’s and Matsukawa’s need to cause chaos. This means they’re both very aware that their time of having the third years as buffers is swiftly coming to an end, and they can’t afford fighting.

So they’re not fighting, but they’re also not friends.

They could be friends, maybe, Shigeru thinks sometimes, not that he’d ever admit that out loud.

He kind of likes Kyoutani, maybe. Kyoutani seems like someone he could maybe get along with well, if he were to try and spend time with him, perhaps. Which Shigeru isn’t going to do, because he can live without the harsh rejection that his trying would undoubtedly get him. Would _prefer_ to live without the rejection, actually.

(Especially considering where his thoughts wander at night, when he lets them; lets himself think about how good Kyoutani looks, and if Shigeru could maybe manage to kiss the scowl off his face, and—

They’re not very productive thoughts. Best not to entertain them during day time.)

Whatever thoughts Shigeru entertains, sometimes, much to his own shame, they’re not friends; they’re friendly acquaintances at _best_ , and even then the word ‘friendly’ would be a stretch.

“Yahaba,” Kyoutani greets him now, through gritted teeth.

He doesn’t look like he wants to fight. He actually looks _nervous_. Which is confusing, because Shigeru has no idea what he could want _other_ than a fight, what he would wait for Shigeru for.

So he just blinks at him, a little confused. They _did_ just see each other a mere ten minutes ago, after all.

“Kyoutani?” he more asks than says, and then straightens his spine. This is not the time to let Kyoutani see that he’s thrown him off his track; whatever it is that Kyoutani wants, showing weakness is a horrible idea.

“Happy birthday,” Kyoutani says, his jaw clenched.

“Thanks?” Shigeru responds, now even more confused. Did Kyoutani seriously wait for him just to tell him something he’s _already told_ Shigeru today, although admittedly through Oikawa’s force?

“I—here,” Kyoutani says, ever-present scowl on his face, and then thrusts his hands at Shigeru—or, no, the little parcel in his hands. It’s small, and rectangular, and shoddily wrapped in what looks to be the pages from a newspaper, and Shigeru didn’t even notice it until now.

“Oh,” he says, and then, again: “Thanks,” more earnestly now. He gently takes it from Kyoutani. Another thing he did not expect: for Kyoutani to give him a gift.

If someone had asked him for his expectations for the day, that wouldn’t have even made it to the bottom of the list.

He isn’t entirely sure what to do with this, what to feel about it—feels uncomfortable and a little bit guilty, just because he didn’t ever treat Kyoutani in a way that _deserves_ a gift, and then also elated, deep down, at this show of care, and warm, and fluttery; there are butterflies in his stomach, and he’s sure his cheeks are going a little bit red, and this is the _worst_ time to remember all his late-night fantasies about kissing Kyoutani.

Softly, he unwraps the gift, the shoddy layers of newspaper and duct tape that function as a wrapping, until finally, he holds—a notebook?

It’s a beautiful notebook, black and leather-bound, with thick, soft, high-quality paper, lined with thin, almost non-existent lines and wide spacing between the lines, the way Shigeru likes his notebooks best.

It’s a beautiful, thoughtful gift.

It’s not at all the kind of gift he would have expected Kyoutani to make, but then again, it is; because he might not admit it, but he’s watched Kyoutani, lately, and tried to figure him out as a person, and what he’s found and seen is a gentle insecurity, a careful thoughtfulness, laying beneath his grumbly, brash exterior.

And still, this is the kind of gift to strip all the layers from Kyoutani, to show his thoughtfulness, and so while it is the kind of gift Shigeru would have expected him to make, privately, it is _not_ the kind of gift he would have expected him to make at _all_ ; too stripping of a thing, ripping away all the defences.

Shigeru looks up from the notebook and doesn’t know what to say.

“You were complaining about not finding your old one last week,” Kyoutani grumbles. “I wasn’t sure if you’d already gotten a new one, but.” He is still scowling. His ears and cheeks are flaming red.

Shigeru, with an aching desperation that is as sudden as it isn’t, wants to kiss him.

“Thank you,” he says instead, fervently. “I haven’t gotten a new one yet.” He looks down at the notebook again. “It’s perfect,” he says, and it _is_ ; it is the exact type of notebook Shigeru prefers. It’s subtle, the way it is perfect, but every little detail fits just right, and Shigeru looks down at the notebook, and then up at Kyoutani again, who is still standing there, red-faced and scowling, and realises he hasn’t been the only one looking.

“I should go,” Kyoutani mutters, low, and turns to do exactly that, and Shigeru can’t _let_ him, suddenly; has the feeling that if Kyoutani goes now, they’re going to be back to careful neutrality tomorrow, watching from afar, hopeless wandering thoughts in the night, and Shigeru doesn’t _want_ that.

He wants the friendship he thinks they could have, he wants to look openly, he wants—he _wants_.

“Kyoutani,” he says, and there’s an edge of the desperation he feels in his voice. “I didn’t give you a birthday gift.”

Kyoutani turns back at him, scowling. “My birthday was three months ago,” he says.

“Just,” Shigeru says, feeling very, very stupid, and steps closer, and Kyoutani is watching him, confusion written all over his face, and then Shigeru leans in, sees Kyoutani’s eyes widen, squeezes his own shut.

Kyoutani’s lips are a little bit chapped; he should probably take better care of them.

They feel utterly perfect against Shigeru’s.

(He changes his list of expectations.

His mother still makes him breakfast. His dog still begs like a pro. Volleyball is still taxing. Oikawa doesn’t flirt with Iwaizumi in his direct vicinity anymore, because Oikawa and Iwaizumi both graduate.

Most importantly of all, though:

Kyoutani waits for him after practice, now, loitering around the school gates. He sometimes even smiles at Shigeru when he sees him, a small, private smile that makes Shigeru feel warm and fluttery down to his toes.

His lips still feel perfect, although considerably less chapped. Shigeru has come to expect that if Shigeru buys him lip balm, Kyoutani will actually use it.)

**Author's Note:**

> If you liked this, I would be more than elated if you could leave me a comment <3
> 
> Find me on twitter @shiwiwrites where I scream about anime, primarily Haikyuu, and writing. :)


End file.
